Support for superheaters



- Feb. 10, 1931. R. M. HARRIS SUPPORT FOR SUPERHEATER S Filed Jan. 30, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOA? flW A TTORNE V Feb. 10, 1931. RIM. HARRIS 1,791,559

SUPPORT FOR SUPERHEATEKS Filed Jan. 50. 19st: 'z-sneets-sheet 2 I I z z I I ,1

ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 10, 1931 UNITED STATS PAENT OFFICE REGINALD M. HARRIS, F FANWOOD, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE SUPERHEA'IER COMPANY, OF NEW. YORK, N. Y.

SUPPORT FOR SUPER-HEATERS Application filed January 30, 1930. Serial No. 424,621.

My invention relates to supporting arrangements and aims to provide a conven ient means whereby superheater elements, or other objects, may be suspended below the banks of boilers having their tubes in vertrcally staggered arrangement.

It has been proposed to suspend superheater elements in the interdeck space of boilers having spaced banks of horizontally 1Q inclined water tubes, by hangers running from the boiler setting through the top tube bank, but such an arrangement has heretofore involved features diificult to install when the water tubes in the upper tube bank have 5 been vertically staggered. It has been proposed also to support superheater elements in the interdeck space of water tube bollers by carrying the weight of the superheater in large measure directly on the boiler itself. Such an arrangement, however, places stresses on the boiler tubes forv which they are not designed.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a suspension for superheater elements or other objects in the interdeck space of watertube boilers or in any position below a tube bank having vertically staggered tubes which shall avoid the above mentioned difliculties.

The novel features of my invention are pointed out in the appended claims. The nvention itself, however, together with further objects and advantages, will best be understood from a detailed description of two forms of suspension arrangement embodying my invention and such a descr ption will now be given in connectlon with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a boiler havao ing an interdeck superheater supported in accordance with my invention, parts belng shown in section for purposes of illustration; Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical transverse section of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 1s a fragmentary view similar to Fig. 2 of a boiler fitted with a modified form of the 111- vention. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view taken on line 44 of Figure 8.

The embodiment of the invention shown by way of illustration in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises a boiler having a drum 10, nipples 11 leading downwardly from said drum to a header 12 and nipples 14 leading downwardly from header 12 to a second header 16 in the same plane as header l2. Horizontally inclined boiler tubes 18, 18, forming an upper tube bank, extend from header 12 to a header 20 and a group of horizontally inclined tubes 22, 22, forming a lower tube bank spaced from the upper one, extend parallel to tubes 18 from the lower header 16 to a header 24 which is connected to header 20 by means of nipples 26. A substantially horizontal group of tubes 28 connects the upper end of header 20 with the drum 10 for conducting steam formed in the generating tubes 18 and 22 from the header 20 to the drum. Above the tubes 28 is the roof 30 of the boiler and above the roof 30 are horizontal fixed beams 32, which may be part of the usual boiler setting, and from which the superheater is to be suspended. As appears clearly in Fig. 2, the tubes 28 are arranged in vertical alignment whereas the tubes 18 are vertically staggered. This is an ordinary arrangement in boilers of the type described. It being desired to suspend a superheater in the interdeck space 34 between the banks 18 and 22, the superheater units or elements 36 may be connected to vertical hanger rods 38 by suitable connections shown at 40 and the upper ends of the hangers 38 then connected to cross beams 42 below tubes 18. lVhile the vertically staggered arrangement of tubes 18 prevents running suspension members vertically upward from beams 42, the arrangement of tubes 18 provides inclined lanes 44 through which are run the inclined hanger rods 46, 46 and 46a, 46a, the lower ends of which are shown as fixed to beams 42 and the upper ends of which are shown as fixed to horizontal transverse beams 48 parallel to beams 42 and above the bank of tubes 18. The rods 46, 46 are parallel and inclined in one direction to the vertical whereas rods 46a, 46a. are parallel to each other and inclined to the vertical oppositely from rods 46, so that rods 46a counterbalance the end thrust on beams 42 and 48 produced by the rods 46.

In the arrangement shown, beams 48 serve not only as supports for rods 46 and 46a, but also as struts taking the horizontal thrusts produced by the inclined rods 46 and 46a, so that there is no pressure on tubes 18. In this connection, it will be noted that each rod 46 is connected to a beam 42 at. practically the same point as one of the rods 46a. Indicating one such point by the letter A, the rods 46 and 46a so identified make with one of the beams 48 a fixed triangle ABC which, if suitably supported, is capable of holding up the weight oi? one or more superheater elements or other objects which it may be desired to suspend below tubes 18. It will be seen therefore that beams 42 may be omitted. If, however, the triangle ABC is inverted and the point A suitably suspended, the beams 48 may be omitted. It is apparent therefore that either set of beams 42 or 48 may be dispensed with, but not both sets at once. However, the beams 48 may be in spaced sections ii. conditions permit 01" the use of a limited number of rods 46 and 4664, so that the triangles of which rods 46 and 460'. are parts do not overlap.

Beams 48 are shown as connected to vertical hanger rods 50, 50, which run through the vertical lanes 52 between the tubes 28 and pass through the roof 30, rods 50 being suspended at their upper ends from fixed beams 32 by ad]ustable nuts 54, 54 threaded to the rods 50 and bearing against washers 56, 56

resting on the upper surfaces of beams 32.

In case the circulator tubes 28 of the boiler are so arranged that the lanes 52 therebetween are inclined instead of vertical, the rods 50 may be inclined in a manner similar to that used for rods 46 and 46a. In fact. when lanes 52 are inclined, rods 46 and 46 may, in some cases, be extended between tubes 28 and through roof 30 and each pair oi? beams 32 and 48 combined into one.

The suspension including the unit hangers 38 may be adjusted vertically by nuts 54 to arrange the elements or units 36 in the desired position. It will be'seen, however, that if the rods 46 and 46a are non-adjustable with respect to the beams 42 and 48, the amount 01": vertical adjrstment obtainable by turning the nuts 54 will be limited to a small amount by the inclined rods 46 and 46a coming in contact with the tubes 18. In order to provide a greater capacity for vertical adjustment in my suspension arrangement, I may place the bolts 58 and 66 connecting the ends of rods 46 and 46a with beams 42 and 48 respectively in horizontal slots 62, 2 in the webs of the beams 42 and 48 so that the ends of the rods 46 and 46a may be shifted horizontally while maintaining the same angle to the vertical to permit greater vertical adjustment of the suspension.

The headers 63, 63 which connect with elements 36 are shown as supported in the same manner as that described above, except that the lower beams 42a have straps 64 fixed thereto which surround headers 63 and transmit their weight to the supporting arrangement.

While a super-heater suspension within my invention permits the weight of an interdeck superheater to be kept oii the boiler tubes when the tubes in the banks are Vertically staggered, my invention may be used to support the superheater from the tube banks if conditions make it desirable to do so. In Fig. 3 I have shown an arrangement for this purpose which is within my invention and which may be used to suspend the superheater from a tube bank and which comp 'ises horizontal beams 66 each extending the full width of the boiler and resting on the top row of tubes 18. The weight of the superheater is supporter from the beams 66 by rods 46 and 46a in a manner similar to that described in connection with Figs. 1 and 2. In order to prevent the beams 66 from sliding along the inclined tubes 18, semi-circular clamping members 72, 72 are clamped around certain of the tubes in the top row of bank 18 on the lower sides of beams 66. As shown, clamps 72 are applied to every fourth tube in the top row, but the number of such clamps to be used with each beam 66 is, of course, a matter of choice with the designer. The members 72 are adapted to embrace a given tube 18 and to clamp the same firmly so that no slipping will occur.

It will be understood that the boiler herein disclosed is of standard type and that I claim nothing as to the boiler per se. Also, it will be seen that an arrangement in accordance with one form of my invention supports the entire weight of the superheater or other object so that none of the weight falls on the boiler tubes while using only parts of standard shape so placed as to be readily assembled in the desired position for use.

The other form of the invention, while not taking the weight of the superheater 06' the boiler, so distributes it that no prying or lateral stresses are imparted to the tubes. It is obvious, also, as to the form shown in Figs. 3 and 4 that by putting the bar 66 for one beam 42 on a different row of tubes from the bar 66 for another beam 42, part of the weight may be placed on one horizontal row of boiler tubes and part on another.

I claim:

1. The combination with a boiler having a tube bank in which the tubes are in vertically staggered rows providing inclined lanes therebetween, of an arrangement for supporting an object beneath said bank and having oppositely inclined rods in said lanes, means holding the upper end of each of said rods at a fixed distance from another, means holding the lower end of each of said rods at a fixed distance from another, and means suspending said rods and said means and sustaining them so that the weight of an object sup ported by the arrangement is kept off the boiler tubes.

2. The combination with a boiler having a tube bank in which the tubes are in vertically staggered rows providing inclined lanes therebetween, of an arrangement for supporting an object beneath said bank and having oppositely inclined rods in said lanes, means connecting said rods in pairs at their one end, and horizontally extending struts forming rigid triangles with said inclined rods.

3. The combination with a boiler having a tube bank in which the tubes are in vertically staggered rows providing inclined lanes therebetween, of an arrangement for supporting an object beneath said bank having oppositely inclined rods in said lanes, means connecting the lower ends of said rods, and means connecting the upper ends of said rods, said second means supporting the horizontal thrusts of said rods to prevent lateral pressure on said tubes.

4. The combination with a boiler having a tube bank in which the tubes are in vertically staggered rows providing inclined lanes therebetween, of superheater elements below said bank, beams between said elements and said bank, connections for supporting said elements from said beams, beams above said bank, inclined hanger rods in said lanes connecting said upper beams to said lower beams and normally fixed to said beams, and means for supporting said upper beams.

5. The combination with a boiler having a tube bank in which thetubes are in vertically staggered rows providing inclined lanes therebetween, of superheater elements below said bank, beams between said elements and said bank, connections for supporting said elements from said beams, beams above said bank, two groups of inclined hanger rods in said lanes connecting said upper to said lower beams, the rods of one group having an inclination opposite to that of those of the other group, and means for supporting said upper beams.

6. The combination as set forth in claim 1 and in which the means for supporting the beam above the tube bank comprises a third set of beams, and rods connecting the beams apove the tube bank to the third set.

' 7. The combination with a boiler having a tube bank in which the tubes are in vertically staggered rows providing inclined lanes therebetween, of superheater elements below said bank, beams between said elements and said bank, connections for supporting said elements from said beams, beams above said bank, two groups of inclined hanger rods extending between said beams in said lanes, the

rods of one group having an inclination opposite to that of the other, means connecting the ends of said rods to said beams and arranged for adjustment of the ends of the rods longitudinally of the beams, and means for supporting said upper beams.

8. The combination with a boiler having a tube bank in which the tubes are in vertically staggered rows providing inclined lanes therebetween, of superheater elements below said bank, beams below said bank, connections between said beams and elements, beams above said bank, both said sets of beams having horizontal slots therein, inclined hanger rods in said lanes, means adjustable in said slots for connecting the ends of said rods to said beams, and means for supporting said upper beams.

REGINALD M. HARRIS. 

